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Considering beauty

Can you see in it things modest and humble?

The Western ideal of beauty usually salutes
things that are pretty, lasting or spectacular. In Japan we were
introduced to another kind of beauty when we had the good fortune to
spend a night at one of Kyoto’s oldest and most famous inns, the
300-year-old Tawaraya. The rooms were simple and spare, filled with
objects that showed the wear of time but still exuded a sturdy presence
that demanded respect. One of the principles of this establishment is
that no one object should stand out above any other.

Leonard Koren, a chronicler of Japanese culture, says this approach fits in with wabi-sabi,
which he calls “a beauty of all things imperfect, impermanent and
incomplete. It is the beauty of things modest and humble. It is the
beauty of things unconventional.” This definition is from his book, Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers (Stone Bridge Press, 1994; available from www.amazon.com).

We were visiting Kyoto for the cherry blossom festival, which held another lesson about wabi-sabi.
To see those pink petals falling gently to the ground, in ponds and on
paths is to experience the impermanence of all things bright and
beautiful. The Japanese have a special place in their hearts for things
that are ephemeral. When we returned to the U.S., both of us had an
altered view of beauty.